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Today, the buzz is all about going green and being environmentally friendly. But when landowners are dealing with weed issues in driveways and lanes on their property, it is difficult to stay “green.” When weeds take over gravel driveways, getting rid of weeds often involves applying chemicals to the ground where animals or people walk, which is not an environmentally green solution.

But how do you deal with unsightly weeds popping up in gravel driveways or sand horse arenas, dirt pathways and gravel parking areas?

At a local horse farm, a demo was given by Ventrac using their 4231TD compact tractor equipped with the Power Rake attachment, along with a Terra Rake and Slip Scoop. The farm owner prefers to use chemical free and green methods whenever possible to maintain the grounds and horse arena. Over the summer, the horse arena had become overrun with weeds and got out of control, making it impossible to level and manicure the arena for riding. Chemical sprays were out of the question due to the animal contact in the area. After several futile attempts by the homeowner to rid the horse arena of the weeds using a disc, tiller and a drag, the situation became overwhelming. Removing the weeds by hand would be a tedious task. Then the cost of first, spraying the arena with chemical sprays, then second, adding new sand, would have been money robbing for this homeowner. The costs could have been hundreds of dollars.

So what alternative was there? How could weeds be removed quickly and with no chemicals?

Ventrac was about to demonstrate a non-chemical method of removing weeds that created a superb horse riding arena as a result.

The Power Rake attachment easily handled the unruly weeds

The Ventrac 4231TD Compact Tractor and Power Rake worked its magic on thehorse arenain a matter of minutes, giving it a fresh new surface. As if new sand had been brought in, the weeds simply disappeared as the Power Rake rolled over the ground, churning the sand and rolling it out the back, creating a day and night transformation. The Power Rake also proved its amazing ability when operating the tractor in reverse with the same optimal results. It took only one or two quick passes over the riding arena sand with the Power Rake to give the area an amazing result. In heavy areas of compaction, an additional pass or two over the sand was necessary, but still a very quick process.

Putting the finishing touches on the arena with the slip scoop

Now it was time to switch attachments. With a couple of quick actions, requiring no-tools, the tractor unit was hooked up to the Ventrac Terra Rake. The Terra Rake performed a tremendous job at leveling the ground while sifting out the weed roots that the Power Rake had destroyed. Passing across the sand with the Terra Rake collected all the dead roots while putting the final finish on the arena. Once the Terra Rake had done its job, a Ventrac Slip Scoop bucket was quickly and easily mounted on the tractor unit. There were a few remaining piles of weed debris left in the arena that the Slip Scoop quickly carried away in a snap.

Churning up fresh weed-free gravel drive with the Power Rake

A driveway demo was also conducted with the Power Rake churning up the weed laden gravel, making it appear to have been given a layer of fresh gravel within minutes. One simple trek over the gravel proved to be stunning. Refreshing the gravel, bringing up the compacted aggregate and weeding without chemicals with a neat finish is what the Power Rake did best.

The homeowner enjoying his time on the Ventrac!

The homeowner also participated in the demo and later commented on “how powerful, yet how smoothly” the tractor and attachment operated. With a few minutes of instruction, the homeowner was able to master the easy to use controls at his fingertips. And I would say he truly enjoyed every moment of it!

He said he was amazed how fast and efficiently the horse arena was weed free and conditioned with little effort. He was equally impressed by the method of changing attachments with Ventrac’s Minute Mount System.

Usingno tools, attachments were changed quickly and smoothly, saving thishomeowner time and energy.

Ventrac has found a way to help landowners “Go Green” and be rid of unruly weeds in their driveway areas, horse arenas and other sand or gravel areas and create a fresh clean appearance from their existing gravel with minimal effort….the Ventrac Power Rake and Terra Rake package Goes Green!

Venture Products, Inc. reserves the right to make changes to product design and specifications without notice. The information on this website has been compiled for US & Canada reference only. Some illustrations and text may include items or offers that are not available in all regions. Please contact your local dealer for details.